Re:Fark.com's live thread during the Sept. 11 attacks
by mindslight on Sunday September 11, 2022 @11:37AM
(#32800530)
The EU has had the chance to step up to defend Ukraine with military aid, but seems to be hamstrung by entrenched interests in its nuclear powers, and a lack of desire to act outside the shadow of the US. I've been first in line to criticize the US military over the past few decades, including for its sheer size that makes it ripe for abuse (eg invasion of Iraq), but genocidal-resurgent Russia has shown that history hasn't ended quite yet.
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Re:Fark.com's live thread during the Sept. 11 attacks
by ptr on Sunday September 11, 2022 @12:06PM
(#32800794)
https://www.statista.com/chart/27331/countries-committing-th...
Plenty of EU countries there.
Re:Fark.com's live thread during the Sept. 11 attacks
by mindslight on Sunday September 11, 2022 @02:03PM
(#32801781)
I apologize for having phrased my comment such that it implies European countries are not contributing. The Baltics, Poland, and Norway [0] are contributing outsized amounts to Ukraine. Russia's (most recent) invasion hits close to home for them, and it shows.
Your chart actually illustrates what I was trying to say, which is that some of the largest EU countries, namely Germany, France, and Italy, have been hesitant to act on a larger scale that would possibly put them in the crosshairs of Russian retaliation. France, being the only sovereign nuclear power remaining in the EU, is particularly important. Having its largest countries be more willing to flex military power would let the EU act outside the shadow of the US and be considered a superpower in its own right.
[0] News to me, albeit unsurprising.